Making the transition.

[JBIZZL3Y]

Thank you all for the advice I really appreciate it,

I'll have a look at a couple of other motherboards then, and look for those with a Z97 chipset. I must admit I thought the one I was looking at seemed slightly expensive compared to a lot of others, I also think a lot of the features included might have been a little pointless for me.

I'm going to spend the day looking at some reviews and doing some research on a couple of the components I'm looking at then hopefully come back with a better idea!

[JBIZZL3Y]

Okay everyone I've been spending most of today going through all the components and I've made a few changes' here's what I have so far:

CPU Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core £236.34

CPU Cooler Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid £78.73

Motherboard Gigabyte GA-Z97MX-Gaming 5 Micro ATX LGA1150 £111.56

Memory Corsair Vengeance LP 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 £114.99

Storage Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" SSD £83.99

Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM £62.40

Video Card EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Ti 3GB £501.50

Case Corsair Air 240 MicroATX Mid Tower £69.59

Power Supply Corsair 750W ATX12V / EPS12V £88.63

Operating System Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) £79.74

Wireless Network Adapter TP-Link TL-WDN4800 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 £26.90

As seems to be a reoccurring trend for me I have yet again more questions if someone wouldn't mind giving me a helping hand:

1. The motherboard I've gone for has an 1x m.2 and 1x sata express connections for ssd? But I can't see wether this is supported by the ssd I've chosen or not. (Nor can I tell if they're worth using?)

Which kind of opens up another question, I've looked at the product descriptions for the components but I'm struggling to determine all of the leads and connections I'm going to need and wether or not the PSU/mobo will have enough ports? (Surely part picker would have alerted me if this was the case?)

2. I've changed case as it looked to me to offer greater placement of the 240mm rad and allowed full size ram rather than low profile (which I'm still looking into changing). Now With the fans, am I right in thinking I'll have the rad vertically at the front and the 2 fans drawing air into the case through it. Then I'll have a fan in the top drawing air up and out and if it will fit another fan in the rear exhausting air out as well.

How does that sound?

(The case is a corsair 240 mATX)

3. I've had a look at some different PSU's and quite liked the look of the corsair one. What do you think? I do want to have a modular PSU though.

[Wyre]

If you are going to be using a TV (not exactly a bad choice) you will be looking at 60Hz (60FPS max) so with that said I would suggest a 7970, or an R9 280x. Either one of these cards will be able to push nearly any game at pretty close to max settings without issue. And it is fairly inexpensive. For £1500 you should be able to build a ridiculously fast machine... i5 K series processor, 16GB of ram, 256GB SSD, 3TB HDD, and dual R9 290 Gigabyte windforce cards in crossfire would NOT be out of the question.

 

I guess it comes down to how much performance you really want/need.

 

Something like this:

 

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/36LTZL

 

Would make a ridiculous system to drive a single 1080p display. A single R9 290 would be enough for that honestly. 

[Guest]

@JBIZZL3Y

 

How does this look ?

 

Swapped the H100i for the H105 as the H100i has a few issues with win 8.1. The H105 should cool slightly better, and it fits ok according to Corsair's website (Look under tech specs) - http://www.corsair.com/en-gb/carbide-series-air-240-high-airflow-micro-atx-and-mini-itx-pc-case

 

 

You only need an i5 and 8GB Ram for gaming. You can always add an extra 8GB Ram, and swap the cpu to an i7 later on should you need to.

 

The EVGA is a much better psu, and 850W is plenty if you ever want to add a 2nd gpu.

 

Caviar blacks are a waste of money. The Blue drive is cheaper, and just as good.

 

 

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  (£164.34 @ Aria PC) 

CPU Cooler: Corsair H105 73.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler  (£81.59 @ Aria PC) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97MX-Gaming 5 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  (£111.56 @ Scan.co.uk) 

Memory: Kingston Fury Red Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  (£62.68 @ Amazon UK) 

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  (£83.99 @ Amazon UK) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (£37.14 @ Aria PC) 

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Ti 3GB Video Card  (£501.50 @ Ebuyer) 

Case: Corsair Air 240 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  (£69.59 @ Aria PC) 

Power Supply: EVGA 850W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  (£94.99 @ Amazon UK) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit)  (£79.75 @ Amazon UK) 

Total: £1287.13

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-08-25 19:13 BST+0100

 

 

Also maybe go for a powerline adapter instead of a wireless card ? You don't lose the use of any plug sockets as this has passthrough so you can plug into the front of it. You might be able to get it cheaper from somewhere like amazon or one of the shops listed on pcpartpicker.

 

Also this doesn't take up any space on your motherboard like a wireless card would.

 

YOUR BASKET

1 x TP-Link AV500 Powerline Adapter with AC Pass Through Starter Kit (TL-PA451KIT)  £36.98

Total : £42.96 (includes shipping : £4.98).

 

 

[Wyre]

That is a good point, gaming on wireless is terrible. 

[JBIZZL3Y]

Thanks for the advice guys,

As for the i7 I think I'm going to stick with it as eventually I'll be moving the pc to a workstation and doing some more heavily threaded work with it which I think could benefit from it.

And yes whilst I'll be using a HDTV for now just for playing games on once I move the pc I'll be using a monitor (possibly multiple).

So if my tv refresh rate is 60hz the maximum fps I'll get on it will be 60? The TV spec says that it has sony 200hz montionflow but I don't no if that's accurate if it is would that mean I'd be able to achieve 200 fps in theory?

Is there really little difference between the blue and black hdd's ? Maybe I'll reconsider then..

What's the issue with the h100i? I'll have a look now and check out that h105.

I'm going to have a good look into those power line adapters. If they offer a fast reliable wireless connection (bearing in mind that I'll primarily be gaming on the pc) then I think they look like a much better option!

I'll have a look at the evga PSU now over the one I've selected..

[Guest]

Thanks for the advice guys,

As for the i7 I think I'm going to stick with it as eventually I'll be moving the pc to a workstation and doing some more heavily threaded work with it which I think could benefit from it.

And yes whilst I'll be using a HDTV for now just for playing games on once I move the pc I'll be using a monitor (possibly multiple).

So if my tv refresh rate is 60hz the maximum fps I'll get on it will be 60? The TV spec says that it has sony 200hz montionflow but I don't no if that's accurate if it is would that mean I'd be able to achieve 200 fps in theory?

Is there really little difference between the blue and black hdd's ? Maybe I'll reconsider then..

What's the issue with the h100i? I'll have a look now and check out that h105.

I'm going to have a good look into those power line adapters. If they offer a fast reliable wireless connection (bearing in mind that I'll primarily be gaming on the pc) then I think they look like a much better option!

I'll have a look at the evga PSU now over the one I've selected..

Yes the i7 will benefit if you are doing threaded work.

 

I don't think the black drives are worth it myself. They can be pretty noisy as well. I would save the £25 and go for the Blue.

 

There are a few issues with certain versions of the Corsair Link software and Windows 8.1. One version causes the LED's to turn pinkish in colour. It can be fixed with a bit of tweaking

 

Here is a pretty recent thread on overclock that describes it - http://www.overclock.net/t/1505099/corsair-h100i-turning-pink

 

Corsair forum - http://forum.corsair.com/v3/showthread.php?p=718428

[JBIZZL3Y]

Thank you for the links, I'm trying to find out if the issue has yet been resolved..

Had a look at the EVGA supernova g2 and it looks like it's best in class! so I've gone with that. Thank you for the recommendation.

Just making some changes to the build now and I'll re post the parts list..

Just a quick question,

I've noticed a couple of posts here and there across the web giving mention to new nvidea gpus and new intel processors coming end of this year.. How much of an improvement is generally seen with their new releases? Am I going to end up needing to upgrade withibg a year a year? What sort of mileage can I expect from the current build?

Thanks for reading.

[Guest]

Thank you for the links, I'm trying to find out if the issue has yet been resolved..

Had a look at the EVGA supernova g2 and it looks like it's best in class! so I've gone with that. Thank you for the recommendation.

Just making some changes to the build now and I'll re post the parts list..

Just a quick question,

I've noticed a couple of posts here and there across the web giving mention to new nvidea gpus and new intel processors coming end of this year.. How much of an improvement is generally seen with their new releases? Am I going to end up needing to upgrade withibg a year a year? What sort of mileage can I expect from the current build?

Thanks for reading.

There is a new Intel cpu due out in September, but it is more of an enthusiast cpu in the mould of the current 2011 socket cpu's. It won't really be any better for gaming than the current i5/i7 1150 cpu.

 

Then you have Broadwell cpu which is due out early next year. That will be a slight improvement over current cpu's (Usually about 10%) but nothing worth waiting for imo. An i5 4690k isn't going to need changing once broadwell comes out.

 

 

I don't really know much about the upcoming 800 series gpu. The GTX 780ti in your spec is a great card though, and if you are only gaming at 1080P then it will be fine. 

[JBIZZL3Y]

Okay so I'm back.. I've been spending some time doing some research and considering my options..

Due to travelling/moving coming up in the next 18 months I had been considering a laptop (something from the likes of alienware) As i think it would of accommodated me better and id be able to take it with me when we move.

But having looked into them I can't bring my self to spend upwards of £1500 when it would be massively underpowered compared to a desktop and also the configurations available didn't really suit me..

So here we go again:

Budget and location:
Ive lowered my original budget to £1000 and i'm in the U.K

Monitor:
i'll be using a 1080p tv for the monitor (sony KDLw642)

I would like the option to overclock but I don't know that I will straight away (being that I'm very inexperienced) the system will be for gaming and almost nothing else..

I'm still a little unsure about the mobo, GPU type & cooling.. with regards to using a heat sink or an AIO water cooler? I'm also concerned that using a wind force type GPU which vents its heat upwards will compromise internal heat and also vent heat straight up into the CPU cooling tower?

 

The case is still subject to change.. I'm considering the corsair 350D over the NZXT which would mean changing the motherboard from atx to mATX.


CPU Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core £171.54
CPU Cooler be quiet! Dark Rock 3 113.8 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing £45.59
Motherboard Asus MAXIMUS VII RANGER ATX LGA1150 £121.50
Memory Corsair Vengeance LP 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 £69.00
Storage Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" SSD £87.54 Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM £37.50
Video Card EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB ACX £265.16
Case NZXT S340 (Black) ATX Mid Tower £59.96
Power Supply Corsair 550W ATX12V / EPS12V £54.41
Operating System Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) £82.22

I will also need a mouse and keyboard but these can be separate from the £1000 budget.. i do like the look of a Razer death adder for a mouse but I'm open to options.

Thanks for reading!

[JBIZZL3Y]

So I'm pretty much set on the following:

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor (£171.54 @ Aria PC)

CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock 3 113.8 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler (£45.59 @ Aria PC)

Motherboard: Asus MAXIMUS VII RANGER ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (£123.72 @ More Computers)

Memory: Corsair Vengeance LP 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£69.00 @ Amazon UK)

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (£87.54 @ Aria PC)

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£37.50 @ Aria PC)

Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card (£299.96 @ Scan.co.uk)

Case: NZXT S340 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case (£59.96 @ Scan.co.uk)

Power Supply: Corsair RM 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply (£71.98 @ Amazon UK)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) (£70.56 @ Amazon UK)

Wireless Network Adapter: Asus PCE-N53 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter (£24.98 @ Amazon UK)

Total: £1062.33

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker

I'm still wondering about the temps due to the gpu venting into the case, any thoughts here? And I think ill add an additional 120mm fan for a front intake.

I'm going to look into oc'ing and possibly just go for it from the start depending on how I'm feeling. I've also been looking at custom psu cables and might possibly go for individualy sleeved cables post build..

As for a mouse and keyboard Im think I'll go for a ducky mini mx or a corsair k65 (I want a compact one) and for a mouse in going to use a razer deathadder.

Other things I need to consider are antivirus and other software. I've not ran windows in years and I want to keep the pc as fast and smooth as possible Ive just got visions of tons of bloat slowing the PC down, can anybody advise me with this?

I'm going to save for the next month or so and purchase the parts in the run up to Christmas/ just after if there's any sale bargains to be had!

So how does the system look? Any problems anyone can see? As I've said before it'll be mainly for gaming and I'd like to be pushing high-ultra 60fps as often as possible.

Thanks again if your still reading I really appreciate the help!

[Wyre]

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB : Might want to change that to the 850 Pro if they are available.

 

Everything else looks pretty good